Maxpreps.com Top 10 Indiana High Schoolers Ever

[Kyle Feller]

Not a bad list... You can't tell me that there have been two players from Marion better than James Blackmon...also from Marion. I'm also wondering what happened to Glenn Robinson. The Henderson/Robinson state championship game is etched in Hoosier History.

10. Fuzzy Vandivier, Franklin

Vandivier played a looong time ago. How long? He was one of John Wooden’s idols. That’s how long ago. However Vandivier ranks as the first great player in Indiana basketball history, leading Franklin to three-straight titles in the early 1920s and earning all-state honors each time. He is a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass. Krider’s Comment: Sparked three-time state champs and resides in Naismith Hall of Fame.



9. Scott Skiles, Plymouth

According to Krider, Skiles was known for his intensity and his will to win. He led tiny Plymouth to an improbable state title over Gary Roosevelt when he hit a 22-foot jump shot at the buzzer to send the game into overtime. Plymouth won in two overtimes with Skiles scoring 39 points. He led the state in scoring his senior year with 29.2 points per game and scored 1,788 career points. He went on to star at Michigan State where he was the National Player of the Year before enjoying a long NBA career. He is currently the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks. Krider’s Comment: Indiana’s most underrated player.



8. Dave Colescott, Marion

Colescott led Marion to a pair of state titles in 1975 and 1976 and finished his three-year varsity career with 1,529 points for a 20.1 average. The Giants were 64-17 in those three seasons, including 28-1 his junior year. Colescott earned Mr. Basketball honors in Indiana his senior year and also won the Trester Award, making him one of only three players in state history to win both awards and a state title in the same year. Although he played four years at North Carolina, his college career was plagued with injuries. He was named to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002. Krider’s Comment: Won Indiana’s trifecta – Mr. Basketball, Trester Award and two state titles.



7. Jay Edwards, Marion

Edwards matched Vandivier’s feat of three straight state titles when he led Marion to state championships in 1985-87. At 6-4, Edwards was a swingman who netted 1,860 points in his career for a 19.0 average. The Giants posted an 85-4 record in his three seasons on the varsity and he shared Mr. Basketball honors in Indiana with teammate Lyndon Jones. Edwards enjoyed a sparklingly two years at Indiana before entering the NBA draft. He was chosen by the Los Angeles Clippers, but was cut in his second year. He played in the CBA and overseas for 12 years. Krider’s Comment: Great outside shooter on three-time state champion.



6. Rick Mount, Lebanon

Considered one of the greatest shooters to ever play the game, Rick Mount was a high school legend who found a spot on the cover of Sports Illustrated in 1966 as the result of a story by Frank DeFord. He was named the No. 1 player in the country and averaged 30.1 points per game as a junior and a senior. His 2,595 career points still rank fourth in Indiana state history. He went on to an outstanding college career at Purdue, averaging over 30 points three-straight seasons, including 35.4 his senior year. He scored 2,323 in his college career, but signed with the ABA in 1970 and was unable to find the same success there that he had in college. Krider’s Comment: Country’s best-ever long-range shooter.



5. Mike Conley Jr., Lawrence North

The son of Olympic long jumper Mike Conley, the younger Conley played on three-consecutive state championship teams at Lawrence North, teaming with Greg Oden to form one of the most potent high school teams in Indiana state history. The Wildcats won their final 45 games and lost just two in Conley’s final two seasons. He scored 1,157 career points and had a school record 449 assists and 290 steals. He played one year at Ohio State, helping to lead the Buckeyes to the national championship game against Florida. He is currently a member of the Memphis Grizzlies of the NBA. Krider’s Comment: Indiana’s best-ever point guard.



4. Damon Bailey, Bedford North Lawrence

Despite playing with no other future Division I players on his team, Damon Bailey led Bedford North Lawrence to the state Final Four three-straight years, winning it all in 1990. He broke the state career scoring record his senior year, finishing with 3,134 points. Besides winning Mr. Indiana honors, he was also the National Player of the Year by a number of media outlets. In four years at Indiana University, Bailey finished fifth on the school’s all-time scoring list with 1,741 points and first with 380 3-pointers. Although drafted by the Indiana Pacers, Bailey never played in the NBA, instead playing four years in the CBA. Krider’s Comment: Single-handedly took team to three Final Fours and one state title.



3. George McGinnis, Washington

McGinnis may have been the best all-around athlete to ever play basketball in the Hoosier State. An outstanding football player, McGinnis led Washington to a mythical state championship as a sophomore receiver. As a senior, McGinnis led the Continentals to a state championship with 35 points and 27 rebounds in the finals, capping a 31-0 season. For his career, McGinnis scored 2,075 points and grabbed 1,638 rebounds. He was named the National Player of the Year by Basketball News in 1969. Although he attended his freshman year at Indiana University, McGinnis declared hardship at the end of the season and signed with the Indiana Pacers of the ABA. He was the ABA Rookie of the Year and helped lead the Pacers to the ABA championship. He later played for the Philadelphia 76ers and enjoyed an 11-year professional career. Krider’s Comment: Unstoppable inside – high school All-American in football and basketball.



2. Greg Oden, Lawrence North

Oden teamed with Conley to win three straight state championships at Lawrence North, but it was Oden who claimed all of the postseason honors. Oden, a 7-0 center, was named Mr. Indiana in 2006 and he also earned National Player of the Year honors as a junior and a senior. He played one season at Ohio State, teaming with Conley to lead the Buckeyes to the NCAA finals against Florida. He was the No. 1 pick of the Portland Trailblazers in 2007, but sat out his rookie year with a knee injury. He is set to make his NBA regular season debut this week. Krider’s Comment: Best – and most humble – big man in Indiana history.



1. Oscar Robertson, Crispus Attucks

Name an honor and Oscar Robertson has probably won it. He was a three-time NCAA player of the year in the late 1950s. He led the United States to a Gold Medal in the 1960 Olympics. He won two state championships in high school. He won an NBA championship with the Milwaukee Bucks. He ranks as one of the all-time leading scorers in NCAA and NBA history. He is the only player in NBA history to average a triple double for an entire season. He was named the “Player of the Century” in 2000 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. He is also in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Krider’s Comment: Still the greatest all-around player in basketball history.

[Loucks]

I know the author (Dave Krider) of that article pretty well. He's from LaPorte and visits our church quite regularly. He's hoping to turn his book about Oden, Conley, and Lawrence North into a movie. He's got a guy from Disney working on the script. We'll see if it ever comes to fruition.

[Kyle Feller]

I saw the book...I'd certainly read it.

[blue2blue]

I wouldn't disagree with the names on the list, though I don't know Vandiver. I don't know where you'd put them, but guys like Larry Bird, Steve Downing, the Van Arsdale twins, Glenn Robinson as mentioned, Steve Green, just to name a few merit consideration, too. Most of those guys went to IU, so I remember them well, I'm sure there are others who went out of state, like May to UNC, who were standouts as well.

[rubalamp]

I think Larry Bird is the one that comes to mind...for him to be beat out by Mike Conley Jr...that seems a bit far-fetched to me.

[Kyle Feller]

Notice that this list isn't titled "top basketball players from Indiana"...it's titled "Top High Schoolers"

Larry Bird wasn't anything to write home about in High School...Mike Conley Jr. was the starting point guard for a team that won three straight state titles.

[rubalamp]

which he won with Greg Oden.

Sorry, I just am not that impressed by Conley.

[Kyle Feller]

Meanwhile...Conley was a top 20 recruit out of high school and led Ohio State to the National Championship game as well....then he was a lottery pick in the NBA Draft. I would assume he's doing something right.

I'd take him...that's for sure.

[rubalamp]

Conley better than Bird...

If this doesn't officially prove you are a moron, nothing will.

Conley has done crap in the pros so far, and has never done ANYTHING without one of the most dominant big men Indiana has every produced. Oden could have made MANY just above average point guards look like they were superstars.

[rubalamp]

Bird was the all-time high scorer of a tiny school (in a time of no class basketball) and earned a scholarship to IU...then the fact that he became one of the best players ever in College and NBA probably indicates the size of school he played for in HS than his talent.

A little more research...he averaged 30 points and 20 rebounds his senior year...yes, you are right...he sucked in high school.

[Kyle Feller]

When did I say "Larry Bird sucked in High School".....?

My goodness it's like a sickness with you, always creating your own stories to somehow make yourself feel like you're right.

Kyle Benge nearly averaged 30 points a game in high school also. Ryne Lightfoot was close once....both against tougher competition. Larry Bird was 3rd in Indiana Mr. Basketball voting I believe (off the top of my head). He would be close to top 10 on my list of high school basketball players in the state of Indiana, but he's not in my top ten.

If Mike Conley played at Larry Birds high school...he probably would've had silly numbers.

[rubalamp]

Larry sucked or "not much to write home about"...I know what a stretch...

Larry would have never lost a high school game if he played with Oden.

[Kyle Feller]

To drive my point further.....in speaking with a certain former Huntington player with great knowledge of "those days".

Larry Bird was told to enter a game during the Indiana/Kentucky All-Star series for junk time (He was buried on the bench)...Larry refused to get off the bench. I"m guessing the reason he was buried on the bench wasn't because he was one of the Top Ten High School Basketball Players ever in the state of Indiana.

To sit here and read your opinions on Mike Conley as a player is embarassing. I'm not willing to concede that you know more about talent than all of the brilliant masterminds that have put this kid on a the fast track to riches and a great career in the NBA.

Conley finished second in the voting of the Indiana Mr. Basketball.
He was selected to the McDonald's All American team.
He was named a PARADE All-American in his senior year.
He was the leader in the Big Ten Conference in assists with 6.1 per game.
He averaged 11.6 points per game in the Big Ten Conference.

"Conley's best performance came against Xavier, when the Buckeyes were being threatened with an early exit out of the tourney. In the overtime period, Mike Conley dominated the game while teammate Greg Oden was on the bench after fouling out. Conley scored 11 points in the extra period to add on to his 21-point total for the game. He also scored the first seven points for Ohio State in overtime, then four free throws in the last 1:03. He led the team with four assists, two steals, and three blocks."

NBA Career Bests So Far:

20 Points vs. Miami
10 Assists vs. Orlando

[water]

If Conley is on this list Glenn Robinson should be on it. He was by some services number 1 in the nation his senior year, no lower than 2(with Chris Webber being the other argument), Parade, McDonald All American, Mr.Basketball, State Champ...Led the nation in Scoring his Jr. Year at Purdue averaging 30 points and 10 rebounds in a tough Big Ten. Has a career average of 20 points in the NBA over a 10 year playing career. Don't know what the criteria is Krider went by, but if Conley is on it, Robinson is on it.

[Kyle Feller]

I agree with you Water. I think Robinson was a sensational High School Player. What he did in the NCAA or NBA means nothing on this list...it's purely High School.